Sunrise News
No. 1 Fort Kent Holds Off No. 4 Vermont Tech in Men's Basketball Semifinals
Sat, Feb 27, 2010 - [Men's Basketball]
Jimmy Lopez had six 3-pointers on Saturday
Jimmy Lopez had six 3-pointers on Saturday

(Concord, N.H.)- Top-seeded University of Maine at Fort Kent has advanced to the championship game of the Sunrise Conference men's basketball tournament for the fourth straight year after beating No. 4 Vermont Technical College 75-66 Saturday at New Hampshire Technical Institute.  The Bengals moved to 20-8 overall while the Green Knights finish the season 11-13.

Fort Kent built a double-digit lead midway through the first half but Vermont Tech clawed their way back and pulled within two points following back-to-back 3-pointers from Kevin Carr with 11 seconds left.

Alan Campbell then nailed a trey at the buzzer and the lead was 37-32.  Neither team played particulary well in the opening half as they both shot under 40 percent from the floor and combined for 23 turnovers.

Fort Kent opened the second half on an 11-4 run to open a 12-point lead.

That margin swelled to 15 when Jimmy Lopez drained back-to-back triples with 15:34 left in the second half.
 
The Bengals kept the lead in double figures for the next seven minutes as they were able to pound the ball inside for open baskets.
 
But Vermont Tech had one more rally in them, thanks to the outside shooting of Carr, and they slashed the lead to seven points with 3:15 on the clock.  But that's as close as they would come as Fort Kent converted several free throws down the stretch to secure the win.

Lopez finished with six 3-pointers and scored 20 points to lead the Bengals.  Manny Odugbela added 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists.  Jeremy Thomas came off the bench to contribute 13 points and Othniel Hyliger posted a double-double with 12 points and 14 boards.

Carr also had six threes and finished with 32 points and six steals.  Trent Roleau had 10 points and nine caroms.  Linden Smith-Hyde added eight points and three assists nad Cody Chamberlin chipped in with six points and seven rebounds.
 
 
 
 
University of Main at Fort Kent